SERAPHIM

PROLOGUE

“What are you doing?”

I looked at my mom, cleaning my room.

“I was reading something online, Mom.”

“Reading again? Get off your bed and go down to the dining area. Your dad is eating breakfast already.”

“Yes, Mom.”

She smiled and kissed her mom’s cheek, then playfully went down.

“Dad! Good morning.”

She hugged and kissed her dad too.

“Good morning sweetheart. Have a seat and eat. Your mom will be here soon.”

“Yes, Dad.”

“How’s school?”

“It’s fine Dad. I made a few friends but it’s okay. I don’t need many friends if what they only want is to be near me because of fame.”

“That’s my girl. Choose whom to be with, especially when choosing friends.”

They both laughed.

“What are you talking about? Corrupting our daughter’s mind?”

“What? That’s not corrupting her mind, that is teaching her to be vigilant of everyone.”

Her mom glared at her dad while her dad had a smirk on his face. She’s so happy to have them as her parents.

“Don’t you have a class for today?”

“Nope, we do not have a class for today, but I have to visit the old library for research.”

“Research? Don’t you need help? We can hire a professional to teach you.”

“It’s fine Mom. I can handle this. Trust me.”

“Aww, of course, I trust you, I just don’t want you to be tired.”

She laughed and thanked her mom and dad.

~~~

“Where are we, lady?”

She went inside their family car and checked if she left something she might need.

“To the old library, sir.”

She didn’t use her car to go there, so her parents decided to ask their family driver to drive her. When they arrived, she told the driver to just fetch her at five in the afternoon.

Looking around the place, only a few people were inside the huge library. Books there are a hundred years old already and were written in another language. Only a few are written in their language. She chose the table hidden from everyone. Her favorite spot. She can find peace in the place.

She checked the books that might contain what she was looking for. Actually, she really has nothing to do at her school. All of her schoolwork is all done. She’s just curious about something.

“How can I find the books I need? They are indeed rare.”

Tired of looking around at thousands of books, she sat down on her chair and heaved a deep sigh.

“Should I just go to Vatican City and look for a history book about them? Argh! I am really curious about the bones!”

“What are you looking for?”

She immediately looked up and saw a guy, the same age as her, standing in front of her.

“Ahm, are you asking me?”

“Yes, I was asking you.”

“Ah, I was just browsing some books.”

She’s skeptical of answering the guy’s questions. She doesn’t know him after all.

“I see.”

The strange guy just left her without saying anything. Her eyebrows creased.

“What was his problem?”

She shrugged her shoulders and continued to look at the shelves of books. She’s almost at the darkest part of the library but still can’t find anything. When she was about to go back to her place, a book fell from the shelf a few meters from the darkroom that seemed to be the storage room of the library. She looks back but is hesitant to get the book. It’s dark there so the book fell on its own without even wind. But there was something inside her urging her to go there and get the book, so she did. She grabs the book and read the title.

“Angels and Demons.”

After reading the title of the book, she browses it. ‘This is what I am looking for. Not the book written by Dan Brown, but a book of history about them!’ she thought. She doesn’t know why, but her heart is beating so loud she can hear it around the corner or in the library.

She was about to go back to her place and went home when she felt something staring at her. Looking around the dark place, she saw a pair of green eyes looking in her direction. She took steps backward. The thing seemed to be walking towards her.

“What is this thing? She’s larger and taller than me based on the position of the eyes.”

She whispered and gulped. When there was finally light, she stopped and waited for the thing to get in the light. There she saw a cute little lion-like cat. She heaves a sigh.

“You’re a cat? You are the one following me? But the height of the eyes I saw is not even your height.”

She has doubts, but maybe she’s mistaken. She went near the cat and patted its head.

“Why are you inside this library? Do you flee here when the librarian is not looking? Then who’s giving you food? Do you want to go with me?”

She’s talking to the cat like it will give her an answer. She loves dogs and is not really into cats, but there’s something in this cat that she wants to take good care of.

“So it really is you.”

She was startled when someone talked behind her back. She’s sitting in front of the cat. Even the cat became alert and aggressive. It even went in front of the guy like it was protecting her. The guy just smirked at the cat he was talking to it in his mind.

“It’s you. Why are you here?”

It was the guy that asked her earlier.

“I was looking for you.”

“For me? What do you mean?”

Before he could utter a word, they heard footsteps going near them. The guy immediately left but uttered words in another language, but what she’s shocked about is that she understands it clearly.

“Iterum convenimus, Seraphim.” - (We’ll meet again, Seraph.)

She’s just staring at the place where the guy stood and vanished in thin air.

“Uhuh, you did a great job, Lilith.”

Her attention went back to her when someone spoke. She saw the librarian smiling and patting the head of the cat, but the cat seemed annoyed and just glaring at her.

“So, here you are. Finally.”

Muriel is confused about the whole thing. The guy that talked to her using another language, she understood what he said, the appearance of the cat, and now, this librarian saying things she doesn’t get at all.

“What do you mean, ma’am? That guy, she vanished in thin air! What is he?”

The lady smiled at her.

“You will know and understand soon. Just be careful next time, Sollene. Don’t talk to strangers and you can take the ‘cat’.”

“Wait, what? I think you are mistaken. My name is Astera Muriel Gozon. Not Sollene. But thanks for giving me the cat.”

Muriel said with awkwardness in her tone. The lady just smiled at her but her eyes seemed to say something to her.

“Eh, not bad, your parents named you after Angels. Anyways, see you next time.”

The lady also vanished in thin air. Muriel doesn’t know if her eyes are deceiving her or if the two really have some superpowers. Because of fear, which she realized after talking to the two, she grabbed the cat and her things and went out of the library. She just went to the convenience store in front of the library and bought something to drink.

“Oh, my god. Do they have superpowers? Why do they talk to me? Do they know me?”

She’s drinking the yogurt drink while talking to the cat like it would answer her. The cat seemed to understand and just rubbed its body on her shoulder. She texted her driver to fetch her immediately and the latter did.

“Oh? You’re home early.”

“Hello, Mom. Yep. Something weird happened.”

“Something weird? Would you mind telling me? Oh, what a cute cat.”

Muriel sat down on the sofa and lay on her back.

“I met two strange people in the library. One talked using another language and I understood it, Mom. I don’t know how that happened. The other one called me Sollene. Isn’t it weird?”

“Well, they are. Maybe they were mistaken. Just like what you have said, baby. They called you by another name.”

“Maybe, Mom.”

“Where did you get this cute little one?”

“Ah, I met him in the library. Maybe he was a stray cat and the librarian took her in. She gave him to me.”

“Oh, I see. Take good care of this little one. Give her a name.”

Muriel thinks of a masculine name and she comes up with a cool name.

“How about Luthor? Luthor Gozon.”

“Great name baby. Now, your name is Luthor.”

Her mom said to the cat.

“Where’s dad?”

“He went to the company. Something came up.”

“Is it major? Should I help Dad?”

“Just a minor problem baby. Your dad can handle it.”

“Okay, Mom. I will just take a shower.”

“Take Luthor with you and clean him. After you take a rest, go down to eat dinner.”

“Yes, Mom. Love you.”

She went upstairs with Luthor in her arms.

“Wait for me here, okay? I’m gonna get you some towels.”

Muriel went inside her walk-in closet to get the towel. While busy looking inside, the cat, whom she named Luthor, heaved a deep sigh.

“She even gave me a name. And that ‘Throne’, just wait I’ll get back at you.”

Yes, you heard it right. The cat is talking. Luthor is talking!

‘Don’t even think of cursing me, Angel in Principalities. I am still watching here.’

Luthor became alert when he heard a voice inside his head. The Angel of Thrones is still there and watching.

‘You have to behave well if you do not want Emily to get mad at you.’

“Yeah, I know. I also have the task of protecting Sollene.”

‘Good. I will assign some of the Dominion Angels to guard the perimeter. Remember to be vigilant if that guy is around.’

“Yes. I understand.”